Republican Ron DeSantis won the Florida governor's race with huge support in GOP strongholds, stunting Democrat Andrew Gillum's big numbers in metropolitan areas by handily winning the vast majority of counties with the highest turnout in this historic midterm election.

As counting continued Wednesday, DeSantis' margin of victory narrowed some to the closest governor's race in Florida history by just over 50,000 votes with more than 8.1 million ballots cast.

Unlike the Senate race between incumbent Democrat Bill Nelson and Republican Gov. Rick Scott, DeSantis won without an automatic recount by a .62 percent margin, just over the .50 percent spread that would trigger it, according to unofficial state election results released Wednesday.

The former three-term congressman built such large leads in reliably Republican swaths of Florida that he was able to overcome Gillum's impressive showing. In losing, the Tallahassee mayor won every major metropolitan area, flipped four counties that President Donald Trump won in 2016 and received more votes than Scott did winning the office in 2010 and 2014.

“Thank you to the people of Florida for your faith, your support and the trust you have placed in me,” DeSantis said after Gillum conceded to him late Tuesday night.

After riding a wave of Trump’s loyal base and borrowing his campaign playbook, DeSantis made sure to also thank the president, saying he was especially thankful for his support “when it wasn’t necessarily the smart thing to do.”

That was in reference to DeSantis coming into the race for governor in January as a relative unknown to most Floridians to face his 20-year GOP veteran primary opponent, Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam. Trump declared his support for DeSantis early in the primary, a move bucking tradition for a sitting president that instantly made DeSantis a contender.

“I think you are going to get tired of me calling you asking you for things for Florida,” DeSantis said, referring to Trump.

The tug-of-war between DeSantis and Gillum drew national attention, pitting Trump against Gillum supporters like former President Barack Obama, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, and celebrities who included P Diddy and Rhianna.

The enthusiasm showed, first with record-breaking early voting that shattered the earlier mark by more than 2 million ballots and later with a 62 percent turnout overall, a level not seen in more than two decades.

This high turnout, which fell between a traditional midterm and the more typically engaging presidential election, was in large part due to Trump's insistence to be heavily involved in the campaign, including holding two Florida campaign rallies in the week leading up to Tuesday.

Trump acknowledged his role in the Florida race during a Wednesday White House press conference.

“A man who happens to be a very smart person was running, Ron DeSantis. And people didn’t give him a chance. And I went and we did some great work. And they’re going to have a great governor in the state of Florida,” the president said.

It was turnout that lifted DeSantis to victory.

He was able to haul in a high number of votes from areas with large concentrations of older voters, like Sumter County, which had the state's largest turnout of nearly 78 percent; and rural, working-class counties like Franklin, with the state's second-largest turnout of nearly 76 percent; and more affluent coastal counties like Collier, which had the third-largest turnout of just over 73 percent.

Democratic consultant Matthew Isbell said Wednesday that a performance like that destroyed Gillum’s noteworthy wins in Seminole and Duval counties, which have favored Republicans in the past.

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Florida Republican gubernatorial candidate Ron DeSantis greets community members during a last-minute campaign rally at The Patio Seafood Tavern in Vero Beach on Monday, Nov. 5, 2018. U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio and Lara Trump, daughter-in-law to President Donald Trump, where on hand to lend their support to the Republican candidate. PATRICK DOVE/TCPALM

A large crowd turned out to attend a last-minute campaign rally for Florida Republican gubernatorial candidate Ron DeSantis the day before Election Day on Monday, Nov. 5, 2018 at The Patio Seafood Tavern in Vero Beach. Also speaking on behalf of DeSantis was U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio and Lara Trump, daughter-in-law to President Donald Trump. PATRICK DOVE/TCPALM

U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio shakes hands with crowd members after a last-minute campaign rally held for Florida Republican gubernatorial candidate Ron DeSantis on Monday, Nov. 5, 2018 at The Patio Seafood Tavern in Vero Beach. Lara Trump, daughter-in-law of President Donald Trump, and other Republican candidates were hand to lend their support to DeSantis. PATRICK DOVE/TCPALM

The demographics of the nearly 5.1 million Floridians who voted early or with absentee ballots hinted to this outcome. The bulk of those voters who cast their ballots early were white and older.

Ultimately, DeSantis’ triumph over Gillum proved to be impressive when considering how well the unapologetic progressive Democrat fared in metropolitan areas.

Gillum flipped four Trump counties: Pinellas, Duval, Seminole and St. Lucie. But the “blue” momentum crashed against the DeSantis red wall when polls closed. Even without Republican stronghold counties in the Panhandle devastated by Michael that were unable to deliver big turnouts, DeSantis still edged out Gillum.

The highest voter turnout in a reliably Democratic county was seen in Gadsden County, a less-populated area with nearly 30,000 registered voters that was hit by the hurricane a month ago. Gillum won that county by a little over 15,000 votes.

Tuesday's election closely mirrored what took place in the 2016 presidential race. Hillary Clinton won big metro counties that leaned Democratic, but the lead was erased by Trump when votes in red counties were tallied, including the Panhandle, North Florida and Southwest Florida.

Gillum lost despite strong showings in big Democratic areas like Miami-Dade and Broward counties, the state's most populous counties that had some of the lowest turnout Tuesday.

“We may not have all shown up in the way that we thought and hoped that we would, but I still believe in and trust the voters,” Gillum said after conceding to DeSantis.

DeSantis jumped right into his transition Wednesday to become Florida's next governor, announcing a transition team that includes outgoing state House Speaker Richard Corcoran; U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, a staunch ally of DeSantis; and Susie Wiles, DeSantis’ campaign chair who helped orchestrate his victory after leading Trump's effort in Florida in 2016.